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March 26, 2011

Painting Of Pedro Martinez Unveiled At Smithsonian

El Orgullo y la Determinacion (Pride and Determination)

A 57-inch by 21-inch oil and beeswax painting of Pedro Martinez, completed in 2000 by Susan Miller-Havens (a close friend of the now 40-year-old pitcher), was unveiledonFriday at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery.

Miller-Havens portrayed Pedro in a white Red Sox uniform, wearing a blue cap with a dark red "B". She replaced the American League patch on his right sleeve with the flag of the Dominican Republic.

She was talking about my hands. What she said to me was that she focused on my hands. She was always analyzing my long fingers, and how I used them to do art ... This is something as important as Cooperstown. It's one of the largest museums in the world and the largest one in the United States. I hope it's only a warm-up for Cooperstown. It gives me great pride and joy.

Martinez, who said there is "very little chance" he will pitch in the major leagues again, will be eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2015.

19 comments:

She was always analyzing my long fingers, and how I used them to do art ...

Years ago, my wife ran in a half-marathon in Bar Harbor and for a few yards was a stride or two behind summer visitor Sandy Koufax (then he smoked her....)--she said she had never seen such large hands on a man. I asked her if his left hand was particularly large, but, alas, she never noticed that detail.

Created by artist Susan Miller-Havens, the painting is 57 inches by 21 inches in size and was created with oil and beeswax on Baltic birch in 2000. It features Martinez wearing a Dominican Republic uniform.

Benjamin posted a big-ass version of the whole painting at SoSH -- which is where I got it, though it comes out smaller here. In that big one, his cap sort of looks like the old Detroit "D", but there is also a smudgy line in the middle that makes it look like a "B".

A war resister friend of ours works installing solar energy panels, and the crew was once on Holmes' show. It was a Big Thing. Apparently awful if it's your house - incredibly disruptive and time-consuming - but a Claim to Fame.